What Ails Indian Education

No university can become a research university unless it possesses the following qualities: dedicated, brilliant students; internationally acclaimed faculty; international-level financial support; and full academic freedom


Much excitement was created when the latest (2005/06) budget granted one billion rupees (US$22 million) to the 11Sc. The IITs, too, have now been permitted to accumulate private endowments for the same amount (about US$5,000 per student). Ihese figures should be contrasted with the figure of US$400,OOO per student enjoyed by Harvard. Even if Harvard is an exceptional case, the fact remains that there are tremendous differences in financial resources, even for Indian "centers of excellence," compared to true research universities. Until this is rectified, India cannot expect to make much progress in higher education.


Some [members of the Parliamentary Committee on Scheduled Castes] feel that our standards are too high. Some members have gone so far as to say that what we need is an Indian standard and not an international standard of in- struction.... It is necessary to debate the fundamental question whether, just because a group of people cannot cope with a certain level of education, they should have the veto power to deny such an education to the rest. (Indiresan and Nigam 1993, 358)
World Class Worldwide: Transforming Research Universities in Asia and Latin ...

edited by Philip G. Altbach, Jorge Balán
inderesan
.Universities generally perform three functions. At the most basic level, they impart knowledge derived from the past to a new generation of students: they teach.
 At the midlevel, they critically apprise past knowledge and distill its essence: they produce textbooks. 
At the highest level, they expand the frontiers of knowledge mainly by minute analysis: they do basic research. 
A few universities make breakthroughs, open completely new vistas of knowledge, or create knowledge revolutions, leading at times to new kinds of industry. A world-class research university may be described as one that sup- ports teaching and research, preferably but not necessarily covering a wide range of disciplines (from the arts and humanities, to the social sciences, and science and technology);' retains the freedom to decide autonomously what to teach, who will teach, and whom to teach; attracts students and recruits faculty from all over the world; and earns international honors lik
Except for those who are genuinely interested in teaching, the teaching profession has come to be viewed as a career option by those who find themselves unfit for other professions.

The results of the Central Teacher Eligibility Tests (C TET) conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), declared on 27 December, 2012, showed that less than 1% of the 7.95 lakh candidates who appeared for the examination passed The C TET comprises two papers. Paper I is for aspirants wishing to teach classes 1-5 and Paper II for classes 6-8. Clearing C TET is essential to teach in any central government school. Delhi government uses CTET for recruitment of teachers for govt-run and aided schools.

In the C TET conducted in 2012, of the 2.71 lakh candidates who appeared for Paper I of C TET, only 2,481 passed. Of the 5.24 lakh candidates who appeared for Paper II, only 2,368 passed. In fact since the examination was introduced in 2011, the pass percentage has been declining. This situation is a "wake up call" for the quality of B.Ed. degree being awarded. This being the real background it is not surprising that the trainee teachers would often get stumped by some students in schools during their training period.

With the advent of internet the students are well informed and the teachers remain far behind. Today's children are digital natives and we, teachers, are digital immigrants. That sums up the gap between students' and teachers' understanding of electronic gadgets and being net—savvy. Many companies and private organisations are targeting schools to provide technology based lessons, lesson plans and assessments. Students in high profile schools bring lap tops or iPads to the classes. Some elite schools provide LCD projectors in every class rooms. It is left to the provider of these facilities to train the teachers. How many B.Ed. colleges have undertaken to make their teachers techno savvy? The schools and B.Ed. colleges do not keep pace with the current developments but function in isolation.

The B.Ed. course trains the teacher to be entirely student— centric. Some of the methods taught in the B.Ed. course may be idealistic but not difficult to practise. After passing the ideal B.Ed. course, once a teacher joins a "real" school the focus shifts from teaching students to "practical considerations". Most of the teachers unlearn what they were taught in the B.Ed. course. There is a huge gap between theory and practice which reduces the B.Ed. course to a mere formality.


Over the years the Reservation Policy has been used more to achieve political ends rather than for up Of the under privileged. It is used by the politicians to create and maintain 'Vote Banks'. Without a total reform in the Electoral System Of the country this policy will remain Only as a tool in the hands Of politicians to attain their own ends. Reservation policy is like treating the symptoms of a social evil, not its remedy. Remedy is to elevate the educational, 60 intellectual and economic level Of the underprivileged by education and instill confidence in them to compete with others as equals.



Its systematic disinvestment in higher education in recent years has yielded nei- ther world-class researchers, nor very many highly trained scholars, scientists, nor managers to sustain high-tech development.... India's colleges and universities, with just a few exceptions, have become large, underfunded, ungovernable institutions. At many of them, politics have intruded into campus life, influencing academic appointments, and decisions across levels.... India's best universities require sustained state support landl they also require effective management and an ethos of academic meritocracy. At present, the structures are not in place to permit building and sustaining top-quality programs even if resources are provided. (Altbach 2005)

In India, as a reaction to age-old discrimination against lower castes, social and political pressures have grown against elitism. Draconian legal measures favoring lower castes and stringent restrictions on the admissions and recruitment of students belonging to upper castes have become an impediment to the pursuit of excellence. The problem is aggravated by political and bureaucratic interference, not merely regarding academic issues like student admissions and faculty selections but even in petty purchases. Such micromanagement takes away all freedom and destroys vitality within the system. Paternalist and authoritarian traditions of Indian culture have led to the existence of autocratic administrations that insist everything has to be done according to rules or precedence, with little or no scope for innovation. That authoritarian culture affects student attitudes, too; students tend to accept what is written down without a questioning mind. Hence, Indian students exhibit commendable skills in applying exist-

students tend to accept what is written down without a questioning mind. Hence, Indian students exhibit commendable skills in applying existing rules to produce optimal designs, but they are uncomfortable about questioning the rules themselves. They suffer from economic pressures as well. Their need to get out of poverty is so great that they are mainly interested in studies that lead to lucrative careers as opposed to scholarship. As a result, not many Indian students make good researchers. Financially, too, Indian universities are in poor shape. Even the much- pampered IITs have an annual budget of about US$20 million (I billion rupees) each, about US$4,000 to US$5,000 (150,000—200,000 rupees) per student each year. Even after factoring in the much lower salaries in India, the funds are a small fraction of what most universities in the world command. Although they enjoy more autonomy than most other institutions
in the country, IITs are not allowed to accumulate endowments in excess of US$20 million. Thus, Indian universities enjoy only one (brilliant students) of the four factors mentioned above as essential for the success of a research university.